How we work

JNCC receives most of its funding as grant-in-aid from the
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the
devolved administrations. It is accountable through those
administrations to the UK parliament and devolved legislatures.
Details of the administrative and financial framework within which
JNCC works are set out in an Accountability
Framework, Management Statement
and Financial
Memorandum.

As a body receiving public funding we are committed to being
open about the decisions we make and the way in which we make them.
Committee meetings are open to the public
and agendas and papers are posted on this site ahead of meetings
while draft minutes are made available soon afterwards.

We work with Defra, the devolved administrations and other
partners in a flexible, open and truly collaborative way. We
involve partners early in developing issues, share data and
analysis and review working relationships regularly. We also make
every effort to respect institutional, procedural and cultural
differences. A Partnership Agreement is
in place setting out how we work with Defra and the devolved
administrations and we have similar agreements with other
partners.

Our priorities, work programmes and funding are agreed jointly
each year by Defra and the devolved administrations. Details are
set out in our corporate and business plans.

We have robust governance arrangements in place to provide
clarity and accountability in the way we manage the organisation
and deliver our work. It also ensures that we make decisions
effectively, monitor performance and manage resources and risk.

We work hard to run JNCC in a sustainable and ethical way. For
example:

We procure sustainable goods and services through fair and open
competition. We not only undertake to always meet suppliers’
payment terms, but currently aim to make payments within 10 days of
invoices being received.

We also set out to be a socially responsible organisation,
providing flexibility to enable our staff to combine work with
family responsibilities and to contribute to the communities they
live in.